Many students have to live with roommates while going to school or university. What are some of the important qualities of a good roommate? Use specific reasons and examples to explain why these qualities are important.
Sample Response
When I was a student at a Russian University I lived with my friend Tonia. Frankly speaking, she was not my friend at first. I mean that we meet when we were in our first year at university. She was looking for a place to live and I offered her to stay at my place because I lived alone and it was quite expensive for me at that time. I must confess that I never felt regret about my decision because Tonia turned out to be a great roommate. Moreover, we became friends and now after two years from my graduation, we still call each other, care about each other and chat through the Internet. Unfortunately, now we live in different cities even in different countries, but I hope our friendship will continue.
In this essay, I will list the main qualities of a good roommate which from my point of view are essential. Furthermore, I must inform that Tonia possesses all these qualities and I am proud to have such a great friend.
First of all, a roommate must be kind and generous. It is easier to deal with a person who is kind and ready to offer a hand. For example, kindness and understanding are essential qualities if one of them got ill. Secondly, roommates must have common interests because it will help them to find more subjects to discuss. I think that when people have nothing to talk about they should not live together because it will be difficult for both of them. In addition, a roommate must be funny but at the same time, she or he must be attentive and understanding. Selfishness is not a good quality for a roommate because people who live together should be attentive to each other's feelings and be ready to sacrifice their time to each other.
In short, I think that roommates must be friends because friendship means understanding and sympathy.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Lowercase common noun Original: University Suggested revision: university Why it matters: University is a common noun here and should not be capitalized.
- 2. Use precise transition Original: Frankly speaking Suggested revision: In fact Why it matters: This transition introduces the factual clarification more naturally.
- 3. Remove conversational filler Original: I mean that Suggested revision: Delete Why it matters: This filler delays the clarification and is unnecessary in a formal essay.
- 4. Use past tense Original: meet Suggested revision: met Why it matters: The meeting happened in the past, so the verb needs the past tense.
- 5. Correct verb pattern Original: offered her to stay Suggested revision: offered to let her stay Why it matters: Offer does not take a person followed directly by a to-infinitive in this meaning.
- 6. Fix verb collocation Original: never felt regret Suggested revision: never regretted Why it matters: Regret is more naturally expressed here with the verb regretted.
- 7. Correct time phrase Original: now after two years from my graduation Suggested revision: now, two years after my graduation Why it matters: After, rather than from, correctly expresses elapsed time following graduation.
- 8. Use natural expression Original: through the Internet Suggested revision: online Why it matters: Online is the more concise and natural expression for internet communication.
- 9. Link parallel details Original: different cities even in different countries Suggested revision: different cities and even different countries Why it matters: The added conjunction clearly connects the two parallel location details.
- 10. Clarify relative clause Original: which from my point of view are essential Suggested revision: that are, in my view, essential Why it matters: This wording gives the restrictive clause clearer structure and punctuation.
- 11. Fix reporting phrase Original: I must inform that Suggested revision: I should add that Why it matters: Inform requires an object, while add that fits the intended meaning.
- 12. Choose precise verb Original: deal Suggested revision: live Why it matters: Live with directly expresses the shared-accommodation relationship being discussed.
Suggested Rewrites
- University university
- Frankly speaking In fact
- I mean that Delete
- meet met
- offered her to stay offered to let her stay
- never felt regret never regretted
Why this response received Band 6.0
The response offers a clear set of relevant roommate qualities and remains easy to follow, with the personal example adding an engaging context. Its main limitation is that the lengthy opening leaves comparatively little space to explain why each quality matters, so several points remain general or repetitive. Prioritise two or three distinct qualities and develop each with a specific situation, consequence, and explanation.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The response addresses the question with several relevant qualities and some supporting explanation, but development is uneven and the opening anecdote occupies excessive space.
Develop fewer qualities in greater depth, linking each one to a specific roommate problem and its practical outcome.
Coherence and Cohesion
The essay has a clear overall progression, although the long introduction and crowded main body create an imbalanced structure.
Give each major quality its own focused paragraph and shorten the personal background so the argument advances more evenly.
Lexical Resource
Vocabulary is adequate for the topic and includes some less common expressions, but several word choices and collocations are awkward or imprecise.
Use more natural combinations such as 'regretted my decision' and 'topics to discuss,' while avoiding unnecessarily formal phrases such as 'I must inform.'
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mix of simple and complex sentences communicates meaning clearly, despite recurring errors with tense, articles, prepositions, and clause construction.
Proofread verb forms and time expressions carefully, especially forms such as 'met,' 'two years after graduation,' and conditional clauses.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
Many students have to live with roommates while going to school or university. What are some of the important qualities of a good roommate? Use specific reasons and examples to explain why these qualities are important.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.